Heart rate monitors, gym balls and medicine balls have all been named as top pieces of essential equipment for home gym users, it has emerged.

According to the Province newspaper, Keith Nicoll - who owns North Shore Athletics - has claimed there are a number of affordable items which can make the home gym experience more beneficial.

In addition to fitness tools such as heart rate monitors, he added that foam rollers and stretch tubing can help home gym exercisers to promote blood flow and strengthen both large and small muscles.

UK fitness coach Brian Mac states on his training website that a heart rate monitor can be used to establish a number of fitness regimes.

He advised that heart rate monitor users may wish to determine their resting heart rate and then use the technology to develop a number of heart rate training zones, including the anaerobic zone, the aerobic zone and the recovery zone.

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